Arrest made in CHS threat

Coffee County Central High School was evacuated Wednesday after a note was found on campus threatening the building.

According to Director of Schools Dr. LaDonna McFall, options were weighed and the choice was made to evacuate the building and dismiss the student population shortly before the regular time.

“You have to think quick and make a lot of quick decisions,” McFall said. “Since it was so close to dismissal time we felt it was best to dismiss the students.”

The students were told that they were going home early because of the weather.

Bus riders were loaded into their regular buses and held off campus until time for regular school stops.

“The bus drivers did an amazing job of getting there within minutes. Students got on their regular bus and we dismissed to a holding area offsite,” McFall said.

McFall said that the evacuation was a precautionary measure.

“You always want to error on the side of safety as much as possible.”

Coffee County Sheriffs Department conducted a search of the building.

McFall said no device was found in the building.

“We are actively looking at some cameras trying to narrow down the originator of this note,” she said.

“This is a really serious offense. And we want to send that message to our students that this is not something to joke about.”

Coffee County Sheriff Department Resource Officer Wendell Norton called in the situation.

McFall said that the administrator quickly evacuated the school.

“They did so under guise of weather precaution so that they could ensure a safe and orderly evacuation of the school. We are pleased with [well] how [the evacuation] went.”

A juvenile student, whose name is not being disclosed, was arrested Thursday and is being charged by the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department with filing a false report. He has also been suspended from the school, according to school officials.